Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in Wisconsin and Minnesota

February 3, 2025 Podcast
EO Radio Show - Your Nonprofit Legal Resource

Welcome to EO Radio Show - Your Nonprofit Legal Resource. I'm Cynthia Rowland, and EO Radio Show episode 110 is the 18th in a series of quick tip episodes focusing on the details of state registration of nonprofit corporations. With the help of Joe Hilliard today, we will look at basic state filing requirements for nonprofit corporations operating in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

In our first state filings episode, we talked about filing in Delaware and California, which are the most frequently used by our clients, most of whom have a connection with California. Other episodes have focused on the state filings in Nevada and Arizona, Washington State and Oregon, Alaska and Hawaii, New York and New Jersey, Massachusetts and Connecticut, Maine and Vermont, Rhode Island and New Hampshire, Florida and Louisiana, North Carolina and South Carolina, Kentucky and Tennessee, Oklahoma and Texas, New Mexico and Utah, Colorado and Wyoming, Washington, D.C., Michigan and Ohio, and last month Illinois and Indiana.

You can find all the prior episodes on our website or the Farella YouTube channel, where there is a playlist just for state filing requirements. We'll work our way through the rest of the states in future episodes.

Show Notes: 

Farella YouTube podcast channel

Resources for Wisconsin:

Wisconsin Department of Financial Services Home Page: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/Home.aspx

Wisconsin Current Entity Search: https://apps.dfi.wi.gov/apps/corpSearch/Search.aspx

Wisconsin Business Entity FAQ: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/FAQ.aspx

Wisconsin Forms Index: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms.aspx

Wisconsin Fees: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Fees.aspx

Wisconsin Nonstock Articles of Incorporation Form and Instructions: hhttps://dfi.wi.gov/Documents/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms/CORP102.pdf

Wisconsin Nonstick Articles FAQ: https://dfi.wi.gov/Documents/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms/CORP102I.pdf

Wisconsin Application for Certificate of Authority Foreign Nonstock Corporation Form and Instructions: https://dfi.wi.gov/Documents/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms/CORP121.pdf

Wisconsin Nonstock Annual Report Form and Instructions: https://dfi.wi.gov/Documents/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms/CORP5.pdf

Wisconsin Nonstock Annual Report FAQ: https://dfi.wi.gov/Documents/BusinessServices/BusinessEntities/Forms/CORP5i.pdf

Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Charitable Organization FAQ: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/BusinessServices/CharitableProfessionalOrganizations/CharitableOrganizationsFAQ.aspx

Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Charitable & Professional Organization Forms: https://dfi.wi.gov/Pages/BusinessServices/CharitableProfessionalOrganizations/Forms.aspx

Wisconsin Department of Revenue Nonprofit Certificate of Exemption FAQ: https://www.revenue.wi.gov/Pages/FAQS/pcs-n-profit.aspx

Marquette University How to Form Wisconsin Nonprofit: https://libguides.marquette.edu/c.php?g=36702&p=233188

Resources for Minnesota:

Minnesota Secretary of State Business Home Page: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/business-liens

Minnesota Secretary of State current entity database: https://mblsportal.sos.state.mn.us/Business/Search

Minnesota Secretary of State Fee Schedule: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/business-liens/start-a-business/business-filing-certification-fee-schedule/

Minnesota Secretary of State Domestic Non-Profit Forms Page: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/business-liens/business-forms-fees/minnesota-non-profit-corporation-forms/

Minnesota Foreign Corporation Forms Page: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/business-liens/business-forms-fees/foreign-corporation-nonprofit-or-cooperative-forms/

Minnesota Nonprofit Articles of Incorporation: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/media/1829/nonprofitarticlesofincorporation.pdf

Minnesota Council of Nonprofits template Articles of Incorporation: https://minnesotanonprofits.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/sample-articles-of-incorporation.pdf

Minnesota Nonprofit Annual Report Form: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/media/1534/nonprofitrenewal.pdf

Minnesota Foreign Certificate of Authority Form: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/media/1559/foreigncorpregistration.pdf

Minnesota Foreign Annual Report: https://www.sos.state.mn.us/media/1560/foreigncorprenewal.pdf

Minnesota Attorney General Charities Home Page: https://www.ag.state.mn.us/charity/

Minnesota Attorney General Charitable Organization Initial Registration Form: https://www.ag.state.mn.us/charity/Forms/C1_InitialRegistration.pdf

Minnesota Department of Revenue Nonprofit Sales Tax Exemption Form: https://www.revenue.state.mn.us/sites/default/files/2023-06/st16.pdf

Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Forms Fees & Publications FAQ: https://minnesotanonprofits.org/resources-tools/starting-a-nonprofit/forms-fees-publications

If you have suggestions for topics you would like us to discuss, please email us at [email protected]. Additional episodes can be found at EORadioShowByFarella.com.

DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to be, nor should it be interpreted as, legal advice or opinion.